Things you did not know about nasa

Things you did not know about NASA

Do you really know NASA? Well, here are interesting NASA facts that will surprise you.

By Pratibha Yadav 21st Jul, 2015 | 12:28 pm

1. NASA: It stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Image source: http://pennpoliticalreview.org

2. Challenge to Soviet Union: NASA was created by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1958, one year after the launch of Soviet Union’s first artificial satellite. It was to challenge Soviet Union’s presence in space. Thus, NASA officially began operation on 1 October 1958.

3. Mission to Moon: It was President John F Kennedy who gave NASA the mission of sending a man to the Moon by the end of the 1960s.

4. Six Apollo missions: Apollo 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 successfully landed on the Moon. About 400,000 people were employed for these Apollo missions.

5. Michael Griffin: NASA has been led by scientist Michael Griffin since April 2005. More than 18,000 employees and 40,000 contractors work for NASA.

6.Innovation Fund: NASA encourages creative thinking and grants $50,000 from its Innovation Fund annually.

7. Height Matters: If you’re taller than 6′3, you cannot apply to NASA. You have to be between 5′2 and 6′3 to apply to be an astronaut at NASA.

8. Gold Foils: NASA uses actual gold foil to protect its space shuttles. This is because gold has high-resistance properties, reflects light, does not tarnish and is suitable for electronic activities at NASA.

9. No Life Insurance: Astronauts can’t get life insurance during the period of service at NASA.